Pat Robertson: A Life and Legacy

Pat Robertson: A Life and Legacy

Pat Robertson: A Life and Legacy

Synopsis

"Pat Robertson: ALife and Legacy" is the first sweeping overview of the vast international media, business, humanitarian, educational, political, legal, and religious empire created by one of the consummate -- and most controversial -- American visionaries ofthe twentieth century.Based on thousands of documents from the files of the Christian Broadcasting Network and the private correspondence of Robertson himself, this meticulously researched book will become the definitive account of Pat Robertson's life and legacy. Author David Edwin Harrell Jr. has conducted more than 100 hours of interviews with 75 people in seven countries -- including extensive interviews with the Robertson family. He brings these numerous resources -- covering everything from Robertson's unique position of influence to his son's drug addiction to the truth behind the caricature often painted of him -- together in one captivating biography."

Excerpt

From one perspective, this is an “insider” book. in 2007, after the release of an American history textbook I co-authored, Unto a Good Land, Pat Robertson interviewed me on The 700 Club. Afterward, the two of us talked about his life and legacy. I told him that I would be interested in writing a definitive book about him and his ministries, but only if I were given access to his extensive personal and ministries files. After that conversation we walked through a room filled with file cabinets containing his personal correspondence and cbn records and, with a wave, he invited me to read. It was a stunning decision on his part — an extraordinary act of trust. of course, I was not a total unknown to Robertson, having written widely, and respectfully, about America’s leading evangelists for many years. Nonetheless, it was an act of confidence that surprised me and many of those closest to Robertson. After reading an early draft of several chapters, one of the senior executives at cbn quizzed me about my access to the array of sources I had cited. When I told him that I had been given free access to the files in Pat Robertson’s office, he responded: “It’s a miracle.”

This densely documented book is the product of months of plowing through those files as well as the large body of academic and journalistic literature about Robertson. in addition, I interviewed Pat Robertson for many hours and talked extensively with members of his family and scores of people who have worked with him in the past or present. I also visited Christian Broadcasting Network regional centers on four continents, talking with scores of WorldReach and Operation Blessing workers. My access to Robertson’s personal and ministries files may sometimes seem to skew . . .